Trying to go the distance...

Wow – it’s been an interesting few weeks.  With only four weeks until the runDisney Tower of Terror 10-Miler, I’m looking at two more long runs of 10 and 11 miles… and hoping I can manage even half of that.

That’s because I’ve been beset by the dreaded IT Band Syndrome.  Apparently, months of running ever-increasing long runs on Florida’s steeply angled roadways/sidewalks/paths are partly to blame.  Add to that my wonky gait thanks to scoliosis and it seems my body never gets a chance to run in any way that’s level and balanced.  Whatever.  All I know is that for the past month and a half, it feels like someone’s taken an ax to the outside of my left knee at mile 7.  I limped through my last long run to reach that magic double-digit 10, but the last few miles were pretty bad.  And that’s not even counting the monsoon in which I ran the final mile!  That actually felt good, comparatively.

So now I’m only running until the pain starts, and then stopping, regardless of how far that is.  Last weekend, I only made it 3 miles.  I stuck with the treadmill earlier this week and did 2.5 miles pain-free, and went outdoors for a slow-paced run with Leo the other day – 2.5 again with no pain.  I’m hopeful, but not optimistic, about my chances for pulling a full 10 miles this weekend.

Meanwhile, there are some bright spots in my running life…

For one thing, Leos’ running with me again!  He took the summer off because, well… because it’s HOT and HUMID down here and who actually wants to run in that?!  I’ve had to, since I signed up for a race at the end of stupid September, but Leo didn’t.  But we’re signed up to run a 5K in November, so he’s doing a short run or two with me each week again.  I missed him!  It’s nice to have him along for the ride again. :)

I’m also trying out a pair of Newton running shoes. 

I’m naturally a mid-foot striker and Newtons are specifically designed to work with a mid-foot strike.  They aren’t cheap, but I was able to get a pair of Lady Isaac S on sale, so I thought I’d give them a try.   So far, I really like them!  They feel a little funny when walking, thanks to the nubs set into the sole of the forefoot, so I’m not sure how useful they’ll be to me on long runs, given my run-walk-run approach.  But when I’m running?  Ooooooo, they’re so good!  Lightweight and springy, I swear Newtons make me lope like a gazelle rather than plod like an elephant.  My only gripes are that the heels aren’t as snug as I like, given my freakishly narrow ankles and previous Achilles injury, and that the reduced cushioning of Newton’s design seems to leave my feet achy for a few days.  But I can address the heels by wearing thick socks and, from what I’ve read, my feet should gain strength and become less achy as time goes on.  I’m following Newton's advice to transition slowly, especially as I have a race coming up; I’m only doing a short run each week in the Newtons for now.  But I’m looking forward to giving them more bonding time, come October, and will report back with a full review.

Product Review: iSmoothRun

For several weeks, both Runkeeper and Active have been selling me the merits of a new (well, new to me) app called iSmoothRun.  A couple of my friends who run have been using it, too, and I decided last week to give it a try.  Know what sold me on it?  It records temperature and humidity.  That’s right, I paid $4.99 for a running app that’ll save for all time the weather conditions of my every run.

Best $4.99 I’ve ever spent with the iPhone App Store.

As anyone reading my blog posts knows, it’s bloody HOT down here in west-central Florida.  And hot, humid conditions mean a slower pace.  I know all of that and I’ve even mostly accepted it… but it’s still frustrating.  But to be able to look back at a run’s data and see, right there in black and white, that I managed a 12:14/mile average pace when the temp was 90° and humidity was 87%?  To quote a ridiculously annoying commercial we all know, it's “priceless.”

It turns out, though, that iSmoothRun came with a few more nifty features I really like, so here’s my little review…

• Its readout is BIG – as in, I can see my time and distance clearly through my armband without reading glasses.  Yes, the little voice tells me those things regularly, too, but I’m a visual learner; you can tell me something ‘til the cows come home, but it won’t sink in until I see it in print.  Really BIG print, now that I’m over 40.
  
• It allows me to track mileage on my shoes – no small feat, given that I’m rotating between four different pairs.  After each run, I need only scroll down in the edit function and select which pair of shoes was on my feet.  iSmoothRun keeps a total mileage tally going on each pair.

• There are options at the end of each run to tell how it felt via smilies.  Trust me – after my last 9-miler, when the most complicated thought I could muster was, “Guh,” picking a face that matched how I felt was a good thing.  At that I had a hard time choosing between an orange, slanty-mouthed “Blah” and a pink, tongue-out “Tired.”
  
• I can elect to have iSmoothRun tell me the fastest song I heard during each run.  This does nothing for my training, but is a nice little surprise to see while walking through a cool-down.

• Auto-pause – each time I stop for a red light, to tie my shoes, to refill a water bottle, to take a 2-minute mid-run swim in the pool (for real – I was roasting!), the app pauses and then resumes when it again feels motion.  From what I can tell, it does so very, very accurately, too.
  
• It tracks cadence!  As you know form my last post, I love counting my cadence.  But after about 5 miles, my brain can’t seem to count past 20 without losing track.  iSmoothRun tracks average cadence, though, so my walk intervals kind of kill any attempt to reach a “perfect” cadence of 90.  But, I’m pretty sure an average of 83 is pretty good, with walk breaks included.
  
• Aside from environmental conditions, though, my favorite element of my new app is the vocal feedback.  My new pal “Smoothy”, as I’ve come to think of the female voice-over used to report time, distance, etc., is very motivating.  Smoothy doesn’t say much – just enough to get her point across.  But her inflections are spot-on: in a perky, excited little voice that I just know belongs to a pony-tailed, pert-nosed, wisp of a cheerleader, Smoothy tells me when it’s time to “Run!”  A few minutes later, she informs me in a calm, relaxed tone to “Walk.”  Every so often, she lets me know how much time and distance have passed and how I’m doing on pace; she always sounds so positive and proud of my hard work.  And I just love when Smoothy busts in with an exuberant “You’re halfway to your goal!”  Which may or may not have anything to do with my final commendation for iSmoothRun…

• It makes me run faster!  Okay, maybe it just tracks differently than Runkeeper and only looks like I’m cranking out a faster pace.  Whatever.  Lower numbers keep me motivated, so it’s all good.

In every other way, iSmoothRun offers the same things I had before using Runkeeper alone: the ability to set up customized intervals, data tracking, synchronization with social media, mapping, etc.  And it works with Runkeeper, so each iSmoothRun is uploaded to my Runkeeper profile.  I’m looking forward to many more fun runs with Smoothy by my side!

Run Me Daddy, Eight-to-the-Bar

(Somewhere in LA, a couple Andrews Sisters are rolling over in their graves right now.)

I discovered something interesting the other day… Studying the data produced by Runkeeper for my last few runs, I noticed a pattern: my pace during run intervals is all over the place – 12:48, 10:17, 11:22, 9:55… it changes by the minute!  Why would that be?  It always feels like I’m running a nice, even pace…

I thought and thought, and then it hit me – music!  It seems my cadence matches the EXACT. RHYTHM. of whatever the shuffle turns up on my iPhone.  Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” playing?  I’m running a precise (and INSANE!) 220 steps per minute.  Florence and her Machine step in with “Dog Days Are Over”?  Yep, I’m magically transported to 150 steps per minute.

I don’t know why this surprises me.  After all, I more or less go through life in eight-count rhythm.  For real.  Apparently my many years as a dancer have resulted in some sort of mental metronome.  I regularly find myself mentally tapping out a beat while preparing breakfast, taking a shower, typing, even reading.  “One, two, three and four, five, six, sevennnn, eight,” as I crack an egg, stir it with a spatula and pop two slices of bread into the toaster.

And oh yes, when I’m running you better believe I’m doing so “eight-to-the-bar.”  Which, by the way, makes it really hard for this math-challenged lady to calculate cadence; my brain counts in eights, but I lack the skills to figure out on the fly just how many steps per minute I’m running if I’m doing seven sets of eight steps in twenty seconds.  (I’d place this type of equation right up there with the classic, “If two trains leave their stations, one in Philadelphia and one in San Francisco… makes my brain hurt.)  So I instead try counting by tens and routinely get lost somewhere around 40, when my inner rhythm section valiantly pulls me back to whatever music is being pumped through my headphones. 

I’ve pondered this for a week and, aside from making for an interesting (to me, anyway), blog post, I see the potential to make this idiosyncrasy work for me: what if I were to stack my running deck by creating a race-day playlist with musical selections that result in the perfect cadence for every portion of the run?  Some slower songs for miles one and two, somewhere in the 150-160 beats-per-minute (BPM) range to force an easy, relaxed warm-up pace… then bring in a nice medley with a consistent 170-180 BPM for endurance through miles three through eight… and finish strong with the power of a solid 182-190 BPM over the final two miles…  Could I possibly create my dream race through music selection alone?

Seems plausible, so I’m going to test it out!  Hopefully with some help from a few DJ and musician friends, I’ll try to piece together the Perfect Playlist for the Tower of Terror 10-Miler.  I’ll be testing it out over the next two months and will report back on my findings.

One of "Those" Runs

I just had "one of those runs"...

Mile 1: remember that I forgot to take preemptive action against my monthly visitor, due any minute; retrace steps back home to remedy.

Mile 2: What's that twinge in my right knee? No worries - a faster cadence makes it go away.

Miles 3-6: This is great! I love running! Look at the pretty trees, listen to the pretty birds! Good morning, world!

Mile 6: left ankle feels "funny" and I'm having tunnel vision. Why are my fingers swollen to the size of bratwurst?

Mile 6.5: Ooooowwwww! Pain shooting back and forth between left ankle and left knee.

Mile 7-8: start taking longer walk intervals, hoping pain will subside; it doesn't.

Mile 8: give in to the pain and hobble the rest of the way home.

Home: discover that I'd been so focused on knee pain, I'd completely missed the chafing situation under my new running skort's legs; take ice bath, pop an Aleve, slather on some hydrocortisone, lay on the couch wondering why I ever thought running would be a fun thing to do.

:)

Who ran Disney? I did!

Well folks, I’m freshly back from a fantastic 10 days at Disney World and happy to report that I continued to train during that time!  I had four runs planned – three short and one long – and pulled off three of the four, including the long run.  Sadly, my feet were just too worn out from theme parking to do the last run – a route to which I was very much looking forward.  :(  Oh well, there’s always next time, right?

Our trip began with two nights at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort (CBR), so that’s where I did my first short run.  I set out a few minute before sunrise, about 6:25am, and caught this gorgeous view as I began my run…

The CBR route is pretty straightforward: loop around the lake as many times as necessary to meet your time or distance goal.  A full loop is about 1.2 miles.

Mine was a time goal of 30 minutes, which resulted in about three loops with a detour through the center island because it’s pretty in there.  The CBR path is paved and well-maintained and mostly shaded – a major plus on a hot, mid-summer Florida run.  There were a few minor hills along the way, which spiced things up a bit, and lots of maintenance workers out sprucing up the beaches, hosing down pool decks, and keeping the beautiful resort looking tidy.  It was nice to see their smiling faces and hear their “Good morning!” greetings as I ran by. 

I give the CBR a solid A for a short run; the landscape is stunning and I ended my run feeling fresh and ready to take on the day!

Next up was my long run.  I was scheduled to do 7.5 miles, but after four Disney days, I was beat.  We took it easy the day before, spending lots of time off of my feet, but I was not feeling the running love by the time my alarm went off at 5:00am.  I decided to go for 5 miles… if I felt good at that point, I’d keep going; if not, 5 would be plenty with all of the walking I was doing in the parks.

We’d moved to the Beach Club Villas by then, so I used a few of the Epcot Resorts running routes to put in my miles.

I started with half a loop around Crescent Lake at sunrise – so pretty!

Just past the Boardwalk, I switched over to the Boardwalk Canal path and took it all the way down to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.  I ran all the way up to the entrance plaza, which was neat – lots of activity up there as security and the bus drivers did their respective checks to get the park ready for opening.

From Hollywood studios, I backtracked along the canal and picked up the Crescent Lake loop again, completing the circle back to the Beach Club.  From there, I exited the resort and ran the 2.4-mile Epcot Resorts Blvd. and Buena Vista Dr. route, which brought me up to 5 miles by the time I reached the Beach Club again.  That’s a very pretty, somewhat shaded route with sidewalk for all but about 20 feet of it; beware, though, of the many short but steep little hills that run along the Swan and Dolphin properties!  Still, by the time I hit 5 miles, I was loosened up and feeling fine, so I did another loop around the lake, took a few paths through the Yacht and Beach Club properties and, yes, finished the full 7.5 miles!

My finish line – couldn’t be prettier:

After a cool-down walk to my room, I took an ice bath, ate a second breakfast and took a long shower.  I could have easily called it a day and lounged around the hotel the rest of the day, but I’d promised Leo a night at Hollywood Studios and, really, I knew it would be better for my legs to walk a bit.  Right?

Right!  I ate every calorie I’d burned earlier at the Hollywood Brown Derby and ended the night with a nod to the upcoming Tower of Terror 10-Miler.

Amazingly enough, I felt pretty okay the next day… but not okay enough to tackle a theme park first thing.  It’s not that anything hurt so much as I was just exhausted; just getting to the quiet pool right outside our room took monumental effort.  By evening, though, I was ready for a walk around Epcot to stretch the legs.

My third and, as it turned out, final Disney vacation run was a short one, so I circled Crescent Lake a couple times and did the Boardwalk Canal loop for a total of 2.5 miles.  We moved to the Villas at Wilderness Lodge for our last two nights and my final run was planned for the trail that runs between the Wilderness lodge and Fort Wilderness.

I was really excited for that one and planned it for our final morning at WDW, before checking out.  But we chose to stay out late at the Magic Kingdom the nightbefore and the combination of a late night and 10 days of being on my feet was just too much; I knew I didn’t have a mile left in me, let alone 2 or 3. 

All in all, I had a really good time running Disney and highly recommend it to anyone looking to stay on track on their Disney vacation!  I also feel like I learned some valuable things for my future long runDisney races:

1.       All of that walking adds up and means stress on your feet, if not your entire lower body.  I’ll be sure to resist any temptation to wander around parks the day before a big race.

2.       Fettuccine Alfredo the night before a long run is not a great idea.

3.       Pay no attention to the teen marathoners with ¼% body fat between the three of them lapping you 5 times in an hour.

4.       Have fun, have fun, have fun – you’re running at Disney World!

All of this will really come in handy now, too… because I am officially registered for the 2013 Princess Half-marathon!  No rest for the weary now; Princess training will commence within weeks after finishing the Tower of Terror 10-Miler.  Bring it.  :)

Running High

No, no, not that kind of “high” – I’m not talking about running while under the influence of illegal substances!  Nor am I talking about “runner’s high”, that naturally-occurring euphoric state brought about by swapping the daily grind for cardiovascular serenity.

I’m using the word “high” literally here, as in running way up HIGH, at an altitude higher than sea level.  Which is exactly what I did last week.

The end of the school year and beginning of summer brought with it, for Leo and me, a trip to the North Carolina mountains.  We rented a house for a week and had lots of time to take in the scenery through drives down the Blue Ridge Parkway and hikes to nearby waterfalls.  I also needed to keep up my training, so I planned to throw a run or two in there.

Now, I’m a sea level gal, living happily about 20’ above (40’ if you consider that I live on the second floor), and regularly running between 5’ below and 40’ above.  I was born and raised in a relatively flat, low city and have only spent time at higher altitudes when traveling and on our several trips to the NC mountains.  My favorite place on Earth is the Low Country of South Carolina.  What I’m saying is that my body is not accustomed to the extra effort required by thinner air, let alone moving itself up and down mountainsides. 

Mind you, our rental house sits around 3300’, so not all that high when compared to places like Denver.  But it’s 3300’ higher than I’m used to, and two days into our stay, I was feeling it: I developed a nagging headache, couldn’t seem to draw a deep breath, and was feeling all sorts of lethargic.  But I was also desperate for a good run after too many hours spent in a car.  So I set out in a refreshing, 72-degree rain shower for a turn around the loop road on which we were situated.  I was going without my trusty Runkeeper app, given that I had no cell service up there, so the loop seemed like a safe plan; I couldn’t get lost, at least.

What I didn’t know was that the aptly-named Big Ridge Rd. climbed, starting at our house, about 300’ in less than half a mile.  No turns, either – the road appeared to go straight up to the heavens from my vantage point.  I’m no quitter, so I took a deep breath, ending with a strong “KILL that damn hill, V!” and took off, determined to run most, if not all, of the climb.  Heels up and calves clenched, I dug my toes hard onto the asphalt, pushing upward with each step, as my breath quickly became labored and wheezy, despite the extra precautionary puff from my inhaler 15 minutes earlier.  About ¾ of the way up, a pick-up truck heading down passed me and the driver threw me a wave and a thumbs-up, which gave me just enough encouragement to haul myself the rest of the way up to where the road flattened out at a horseshoe turn.

I did it!  I ran the entirety of that evil hill, climbed 300’ in half a mile and walked the sharp turn to begin what I assumed would be my descent.  Wrong.  On the other end of the horseshoe, Big Ridge Rd. continued its climb into, literally, the clouds.

“Oh, HELL no!!!” I thought.  My quads were quivering, my glutes screamed for mercy, and my overtaxed lungs, I swear, were whimpering at the prospect of another climb.  So I turned around and went back down, running the whole way, and finished my planned 35 minutes on the slightly less dramatic hills of a connecting road below the house.  In the end, I managed 2.78 miles in 35 minutes, for an average pace of 12:35/mile.  In the rain.  At altitude.  On the biggest hills I’ve ever seen.

THAT is one for the books.

P.S.  A week later, my muscles were sufficiently recovered for a 3-mile run back home, in Florida.  It was hot, muggy and miserable, but man-oh-man, I’ve never felt stronger!  My lungs had no problem maintaining 2:00/1:00 run/walk intervals and my legs attacked the small inclines along the path like they were nothing.  I am now a firm believer in the power of A. pushing yourself once in a while, and B. hill training.  Better believe I’ll be doing some serious tall-bridge running in my future.

Breaking News - you want to do WHAT?!

Well, color me stunned.  Amazed.  Shocked.  Flummoxed, even.

Leo, my 10-year-old son, and I had a little chat last night.  About future Disney planning.  He was browsing our most recent issue of the Disney Vacation Club member magazine and came across a runDisney page that lists all of the upcoming WDW races.  Leo wanted to know which long ones I’ll be doing and when he and I might do another race.  The next possible one we could do happens to be Mickey's Jingle Jungle 5K associated with the Wine & Dine Half-Marathon in November.

“Cool!” Leo exclaimed when I explained that the Jingle Jungle 5K will be run through the Animal Kingdom park, “Let’s do that one!”

“Cool,” indeed!  Except that we’ve been planning a return trip to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at the end of October and my budget simply can’t cover the expense of that and a race weekend within weeks of each other.  Now, I love me some Not So Scary partying, but we’ve been doing the party for years; I’d be okay skipping it this time.  But I was quite sure Leo wouldn’t be.  Still…

“Leo, we can’t afford to do both the Halloween party weekend and the Jingle Jungle weekend.  Which would you rather do?”

And that’s when the shock came…

“The race!” proclaimed Leo, with a grin the size of a Buick.

Really?!  My boy would rather do a silly 5K race than party down with the Mouse in full Halloween regalia?  Give up the stellar Boo to You parade and mesmerizing Hallowishes fireworks display in favor of a cheap, over-logoed T-shirt and a rubber finisher’s medal???

Yep.  I asked again this morning, thinking he may have changed his mind after sleeping on it, but no – he’s all about doing the race instead of the Party.

What a neat kid.  Bring on the Jingle Jungle!